India HCP Market Clocks 3rd Consecutive Quarter of Yearly Growth

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India HCP market continued the momentum by clocking a healthy year on year growth of 8.5% in 2018Q1 shipping 885,826 units, as per latest IDC Asia Pacific Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker, 2018Q1.

Inkjet shipments grew by 10.7% year on year with overall shipments of 397,901 units while laser printers including copiers saw a year on year growth of 12.5% with overall shipments touching 435,491 units. India Laser market was the second-highest market in the entire Asia Pacific region excluding Japan, unit wise. Continuing the demand impetus from GST implementation, Laser printers saw an increased traction from small and medium enterprises.

“Q1 traditionally sees strong demand from government and 2018Q1 was no different with the demand majorly coming from the Education segment through Government. Although the volume of Government contracts has decreased, the frequency of orders has increased significantly. The demand for original copiers has increased due to Government clamp down on the reconditioned copier market by seizing shipments and cancelling licenses of distributors dealing in such products.”, says Bani Johri, Market Analyst, IPDS, IDC India.

“From an inkjet perspective, the ink tank market continued to rise steadily and now commands almost 70% of the inkjet market. This can be majorly attributed to the launch of new ink tank models by leading vendors, targeted at SMBs and Home users, as well as increased promotional activities by them”, adds Johri.

Top 3 Brand Highlights:

HP Inc. maintained its position as the overall market leader in HCP with a share of 39.2% and a 3.3% year on year growth. The launch of 6 new laser models, high traction from entry level Laser segment and end user focussed promotions helped HP Inc increase its dominance in the Laser HCP (Printer-based) market by 2.9% over 2017Q4. It gained significant ground in Laser HCP (Copier-based) segment as well through increased channel presence. HP Inc maintained its 2nd position in the inkjet market with a market share of 29.3%.

Epson sustained its 2nd position in the HCP market by clocking 27.4% year on year growth. It also continued its leadership in inkjet printer market by retaining its first position with a unit share of 50.3% and a 29.7% year on year growth, primarily due to the growth of its L-series models. Epson’s focus on increasing its channel presence by incentivizing the regional distributors was the one of the key factors contributing to its market leadership in the inkjet category. Other contributing factors are boosting its online presence of its entry level segment and refreshing its portfolio.

Canon, recorded year on year growth of 3.5% and occupied the 3rd position in the HCP market . Laser copier leads the way clocking a year on year growth of 32.6%. It maintained its number one position in the copier market as well with 23.3% unit market share. This trend is mainly attributed to Canon witnessing increased demand from the Government and its focus on championing the color segment and high speed copiers through channel development and training of its sales representatives. In the Inkjet market Canon saw a strong year on year growth of 31.8% as a result of their increased promotional activities around inktank models.

IDC India Market Outlook:

“Market is expected to continue the growth momentum in 2018Q2 as well with a healthy double digit year on year growth led by inkjet printers. Inktank printers preference among consumers is increasing and vendors will look to aggressively push ink tank printers through marketing, channel schemes and end user promotions. On the laser side, strong demand from SMB and government will fuel the growth. Print security related concerns and need for digitization will result in strong demand for laser copiers across verticals. However, vendors will be under stress on account of Rupee depreciation and might be forced to relook at the prices.”, says Nishant Bansal, Research Manager, IPDS, IDC India.

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